In a long historical period，Due to differences in geographical location and culture，Westerners have crazy and strange imaginations about China。Argentinian poet、Novelist、Essayist、The translator Borges is very fascinated by bet365 sign up bonus code culture: "I have said to many people，I also dream of going to China。"Although he never set foot on bet365 sign up bonus code soil，But his fantastic thoughts about this ancient country never stopped。In his article "The Analytical Language of John Wilkins", Borges once "quoted" the classification of animals in an ancient bet365 sign up bonus code encyclopedia: "(1) Belongs to the Emperor，(2) Fragrant fragrance，(3) docile，(4) Suckling Pig，(5) Eel Newt，(6) legendary，(7) Dogs walking freely，(8) included in the current classification，(9) irritated like crazy，(10) countless，(11) The whole body is covered with very fine camel hair brush hair，(12) etc.，(13) Just broke the jug，(14) Looks like a fly from a distance。”

Actually，bet365 sign up bonus code classification is borrowed by Borges from the famous German Sinologist、Translator Franz Kuhn, 1884-1961) Made up by the doctor。Dr. Kuhn did not compile the so-called "Encyclopedia of China"，That is, "A Broad View of Renxue in the Celestial Dynasty"。As a master of language fiction，Borges made up a plausible story、Mysterious and weird ancient China，And bet365 sign up bonus code pure fiction is often believed to be true，Foucault was even inspired by bet365 sign up bonus code and created his representative work "Words and Things"，And quoted the above-mentioned list of animal classifications at the beginning of the preface。bet365 sign up bonus code so-called "animal taxonomy" from the ancient East surprised Foucault，He understood the huge gap that arises when different cultures classify and interpret nature in language，And then obtained the inspiration for the creation of "Words and Objects"，bet365 sign up bonus code is really a wonderful misunderstanding。

Although this quotation is a little joke made by Borges，The word "eel" caught our attention。"Macmillan Encyclopedia" records，The salamander is an animal unique to North America，It is an eel-like salamander。Since this is an animal only found in North America，How could it appear in a so-called encyclopedia of ancient China？This involves the accuracy of translation。In Borges’ original text，The Spanish word he used was “sirenas”，There are sirens、Meanings such as eel and salamander，Foucault quoted the French version of this article，The bet365 sign up bonus code version of "Words and Things" translates it as "eel"。We think，Since Borges’ fictional background is China，Anel salamander is a creature that only exists in North America，Logically speaking，The translation here as "eel" is obviously up for discussion。

If according to the dictionary explanation，Can it be translated as "Mermaid" or "Siren"？We think this is still inappropriate。Although the image of a mermaid with a human head and a fish body widely exists in Eastern and Western myths and legends，But its specific image and emotional connotation in differentiated cultural backgrounds are not the same。Just as China and the West both have the concept of "dragon"，But the bet365 sign up bonus code dragon is majestic and peaceful，The dragon in the West is violent and evil，If we simply equate Western “mermaids” with bet365 sign up bonus code “mermaids”，In fact, it is impossible to accurately convey the difference between the two，It may even cause misunderstandings like chickens and ducks talking。

There are big differences in the evolution of the image of “mermaids” in bet365 sign up bonus code and Western myths and legends，The final images of “mermaids” are also different。The beauty of the "mermaid" in the West、Sexy，Fatal temptation。Homer's epic poem "The Odyssey" is the earliest literary work in the West to mention sirens，Legend has it that the sirens seduced sailors with their beautiful songs，Make the sailors drunken and mesmerized，Walk towards them forgetfully，"They seduce anyone who comes，Whoever approaches them without knowing，Listen to their songs，Don’t even think about returning home，Seeing my wife and children happily around me，And the sirens sat on the lawn，Confuse him with a clear singing voice，Piles of bones around，There are also shriveled human skins”。Even the hero Odysseus could not resist the beautiful singing of the sirens，Sailors need to tie themselves up tightly to cross the sea safely。In ancient Greece and Rome，Sirens often appear in the form of human heads and bird bodies，And has the ability to transform into a fish or bird at will between the sea and the sky。Until the Middle Ages，The image of the sirens has just been fixed，Become the mermaid that people now know。Visible，Sirens are cruel、Wisdom、Sexy、A half-human, half-fish mythical image with rich connotations that combines the attraction of beauty and the shadow of death。

However，The traditional bet365 sign up bonus code name for the image of mermaid is not “mermaid”，The word "mermaid" is actually an imported product，It was only after the May 4th Movement that it was widely used to refer to "sirens" in Western culture。The bet365 sign up bonus code image of mermaid first appeared in "The Classic of Mountains and Seas"，The book mentions the image of monsters with human heads and fish bodies in many places，Such as "Di Ren", "Red Rooster", "Ling Yu" and "Fish Wife" etc.，But the record is simple，No specific character story。In the Jin Dynasty，The image of the shriveled mermaid has a legend of "crying into tears": the mermaid comes from the water，Living in one household，RiRi Textile。When I am about to leave，She asked the host for a container，The falling teardrops turned into pearls，And give a pot full of pearls to the owner。Starting from this period，“鲛人” has become the mainstream name for mermaids。Song Dynasty，The "mermaid" is described as a beautiful and lovely woman，It has become the object of literati’s fascinating fantasies。"The light silk text is indiscernible，Every night is clear and full of moonlight” “The moon in the sea has tears in its pearls”，The sun is warm in Lantian and the jade is smoked" "Spring is as old as before、People are thin and empty。Tear stains are red and the shark’s gauze is transparent”。Shark allusions are widely integrated into poetry，Making "mermaid" a poetic image with tragic connotations。

Judging from the evolution and development of bet365 sign up bonus code mermaid myths and legends，The "mermaid" finally turned into a beautiful and hard-working person、The image of repaying kindness。The West has instinctive impulses and destructive power、The Siren of Temptation，The instinctive power and sexual attraction of "Merman" are restricted and weakened，She is full of graceful beauty，And it has more social and ethical significance or educational effect。Considering the traditional bet365 sign up bonus code name for the mythical image of a human head and a fish body，And “mermaids” are more emotional than Western images of “mermaids” or “sirens”，Big difference in connotation，So we think，“sirènes” is more appropriately translated as “mermaid”。

Borges’s “Exquisite Fiction”，Like the gleaming yarn woven by the sharks，Try to translate "eel" into "mermaid"，Maybe it can make up for the minor problems caused by translation，Let it retain its meaning in the specific context。Furthermore，How to retain the national language expression in the original text at the cultural level，Looking for appropriate words to convey relevant cultural information, thoughts and emotions，Appropriate yet beautiful，Undoubtedly a translation problem。Here，We suggest that the bet365 sign up bonus code version of Foucault's "Words and Things" should be translated as "Eel" as "Shark Man"，Perhaps to improve the accuracy of the translation、Vividness、A useful attempt at expressiveness。

　(Author’s affiliation: School of Liberal Arts, South bet365 sign up bonus code Normal University)